Aces, led by player-cum-coach Fabrice Santoro, won all five sets in convincing manner as Ana Ivanovic set the ball rolling with a 6-2 triumph over Kristina Mladenovic in the first set.

Mixed joyIn the mixed doubles match, the experienced Indian pairing of Rohan Bopanna and Sania Mirza triumphed 6-5 over Kristina Mladenovic and Nenad Zimonjic following a five-minute shootout.

Up next, flamboyant Frenchman Gael Monfils outplayed reigning US Open Champion Marin Cilic 6-1 in the third and men's singles set to make it 18-8 lead for the Aces.

Santoro won the past champions' set 6-2 against a struggling Goran Ivanisevic, who was nursing a hamstring strain before being substituted mid-match by Nenad Zimonjic. But Zimonjic failed to stop a rampaging Santoro.

The final set of the match was the men's doubles contest, which saw Bopanna and Monfils return to the fray to defeat a dispirited Cilic and Zimonjic 6-1.